What’s next for Adsit house?

With a Steuben County Supreme Court ruling Friday, the Adsit House will not be coming down anytime soon. What will happen to the building now is anyone’s guess.

Bob Clark

With a Steuben County Supreme Court ruling Friday, the Adsit House will not be coming down anytime soon.

What will happen to the building now is anyone’s guess.

Judge Marianne Furfure ruled Friday the Hornell city Planning Board should have required a development plan from Doug Hess, who with partner Nick Yunis of NYDH LLC had hoped to develop a the site for a possible chain drug store.

“Based on the above, petitioners are entitled to a judgment annulling the permit to demolish the Adsit House granted Feb. 13, 2007,” Furfure wrote Friday, “and further enjoining respondents from taking any steps to demolish the structure pending issuance of a new permit in compliance with this decision.”

The demolition permit was approved by the planning board, but was never issued after members of Historic Hornell, Inc. members Mildred McAnany and Stephen and Patricia Piper filed an Article 78 lawsuit to stop the demolition.

Furfure’s decision on the lawsuit was lauded by Hornell Mayor Shawn Hogan.

“I think the opinion was in line with how I perceived the building code,” Hogan said.
Over the last year, while the building’s fate has been under court scrutiny, the building has been left unheated and not maintained.

“I think it’s too far gone now (to save),” Hogan said, adding having something new built on the site may be in order, “rather than have that eyesore over there.

“That’s what it’s become over the last year, an eyesore,” he added.

With the building’s condition deteriorating and the lack of cooperation between NYDH and HHI, Hogan said he no longer wants to move the building, a deal he tried to broker previously.

“I don’t want to be involved in it (the move),” he said. “I wash my hands of it.”

According to Hogan, he has heard a developer may still be interested in building a commercial structure on the site, but he wants his office to stay informed of what is going on.

“If there’s going to be development in that corner, let’s find out what it is,” he said. “I believe, if we did that a year ago, I think there would be something in there we could be proud of.”

Hess declined to comment on the ruling and whether he would seek to reapply for a demolition permit.

Robert Koegel, the attorney for HHI, said this morning he was “obviously very happy about it.”

“The statute is clearly there to protect buildings there in the overlay zone,” he said. “It was presumed the person (requesting demolition) would come forward... and discuss what would be put in its place.”

Koegel said his clients will likely fight any attempt to reapply for a demolition permit, saying there are many other options for what he called “the oldest and most historic building in town.”

“To put something in that building would be great,” Koegel said.

The Adsit house was built in 1828 by Hornell founding father Martin Adsit, a Main Street merchant. The house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in February of 2003.

The next step, according to Hornell city Attorney Joseph Pelych, is NYDH will likely re-file its demolition application and make the necessary corrections.

“What I fully expect will happen is (NYDH) will reapply for another permit and take it back in front of the (planning) board,” he said at Monday night’s Common Council meeting, adding the application will reflect Furfure’s ruling on the case.

“The last application basically said, ‘We’re going to tear down the building,’” Pelych added, saying there will be a development plan included in the application, which should come to the city in the next few weeks.